Oral Answers to Questions

Lee Barron Excerpts

Monday 7th April 2025 Commons Chamber

[Matthew Pennycook]

Housing is a devolved matter, but I am always keen to convey to colleagues in the Scottish Government precisely the benefits of the proposals we are taking forward when it comes to planning reform and renewed drive for house building.

[Lee Barron (Corby and East Northamptonshire) (Lab)]

9. What steps her Department is taking to provide safe accommodation for victims of domestic abuse.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government (Rushanara Ali)]

Local authorities in England must ensure that support is available in safe accommodation for domestic abuse victims who need it. My Department has allocated £160 million for 2025-26, a £30 million uplift from the previous year. That funding is for local authorities to commission lifesaving support for victims in safe accommodation.

[Lee Barron]

One of my constituents is a victim of domestic abuse and on a 999 priority list. She was served a section 21 notice by her landlord and denied band A housing by the council because, in order to keep custody of her children, she had signed a police protection order stating that she was not at risk of domestic violence. She was forced to choose between her children and a safe home. What is my hon. Friend doing to ensure that councils properly prioritise domestic abuse victims so that no one faces such an impossible choice?

[Rushanara Ali]

I am so sorry to hear about the difficulties that my hon. Friend’s constituent has faced. That is horrific. He will be aware that the Government are focused on tackling violence against women, working across Departments and being led by the Home Secretary and the Deputy Prime Minister. Local authorities are strongly encouraged through statutory guidance to give priority for social housing to victims of domestic abuse and their families, particularly if they are homeless and require urgent rehousing. We are also taking action to exempt victims of domestic abuse from local connection tests, where they apply, to ensure that there are no barriers to victims accessing social housing.

Employment Rights Bill

Lee Barron Excerpts

2nd reading
Monday 21st October 2024 Commons Chamber

[Lee Barron (Corby and East Northamptonshire) (Lab)]

I declare my proud membership of the Communication Workers Union and that, by virtue of my last name, I am the only legitimate union Barron in this House—I am proud of that fact.

The Bill is a step change and a new deal for working people. It is transformational for so many in my constituency of Corby and East Northants because, for too long, the world of work has not paid. Let’s make no bones about it: this is about growth. We do not believe that the economy can grow based on insecure jobs, zero-hours contracts and bogus self-employment. People need more than that to feed their families. That is why the Bill is so essential. This legislation will give working people a sense of fairness in the world of work, where they can play their part in building our economy and be treated as they should be in our society—with the security, dignity and respect that a job should bring. Our values should not stop at the front door of our workplace; they are an essential part of it.

In this debate, Opposition Members have turned around and said that we are doing this to them: “Businesses don’t want this; no one wants it apart from you lot.” Well, if they had a look at the poll conducted by the Institute for Public Policy Research along with the TUC, they would see that 60% of employers said that employees should have more security at work; 74% believed that strengthening employment rights would improve workforce retention; 73% said that strengthening employment rights would boost productivity; 61% thought that stronger employment rights would have a positive impact on business profitability; and 73% said that they would be prepared to support giving employees protection from unfair dismissal from the first day. This is not being done to anybody. It is being done with them, and we should be proud of that.

Here is my final point: we pay millions to people who look after our money, but we pay peanuts to those who look after our people. That needs to change. That is why I am so pleased to support the improvements to pay and conditions through fair pay agreements, starting in the care sector. They are the ones who need it. We need to deal with the recruitment and retention of the people who look after our loved ones, so that they know from one day to the next who will be coming around and washing their bodies. It needs to be done; it cannot stay as it is. That is why we should support the Bill.